Mike
Did this on a TR250, but the body and frame are virtually the same as a 4A.
I suggest that you do something to keep the body pan from bending even a
little bit. The potential problem is that even a little bit will result in
screams of frustration and knashing of teeth when you try to re-align the
body panels (wings? fenders?)later. If you get a bunch of friends to come
over and lift it off and carefully set it down, you might get away with no
problems, but I wouldn't bank on it. When I did mine I took the advice of a
number of people on the list and did the following:
I stripped the car down to just the body mounted on the frame. Windscreen,
doors, boot lid, bonnet, wings (all of them) removed. Obviously, all the
innards were removed, bagged and tagged. wiring harness, heater, dash,
everything. The intent was to get the body ready for cutting out rust,
welding in repair metal, final body work, rust proofing and painting.
With the doors off, I welded in a piece of angle iron between the A and B
post on both sides. Stout stuff. 1 1/2 inch to a side I think. I made sure I
got very good welds on both the top and bottom of where the iron rested
against the posts. I seem to recall using about 40 inch lengths. Welded it
in about 6 inches down from the top of the B post and leveled the support to
locate the spot on the A post.
Then I took out the bolts which attached the body to the frame. (They were
rusted badly so this was a major undertaking and ended up grinding the heads
off most of them and getting the bolts out after lifting the body. With the
body being nothing more than a sheet metal shell at this point, I rigged two
lifting straps. One through the back of the front wheel wells, and the other
through the rear wheel wells under the package shelf. Much to my suprise, in
this state the whole body couldn't have weighed 150lbs. (I discovered this
later when after lowering it back to the frame my 15yo son and 17yo daughter
and I lifted the whole body, re-maneuvered it around and reset it ourselves.
But be careful where you hold it when you lift. Sides seem a little more
stable than a front and back pick up, and you don't want to bend the
valences. )
Then I connected the slings to a comealong centered over the cockpit area
hanging from the rafters in my garage, rechecked that I had ALL the bolts
and attachments off, and hoisted it up. I spread out the load on the rafters
by slinging the comealong to a group of 2x4s that were lain across them.
Worked like a champ. That car body hung from my rafters for a month until I
could get it restored, and for several more months later while I finished
with the frame, suspension, brakes, engine, transmission and drive train.
Put wheels and tires on, lowered the finished body down and bolted
everything back down.
Then it was simply a matter of cutting out the angle iron and touching up
the weld spots.
Don't have a welder? I have heard of people bolting up wood support jigs to
accomplish the same thing.
If you can't find a way to securely and safely hang the body while you do
the frame, you may be able to simply lift it off and set it on the ground
out of the way. But, be careful. It has been suggested that a rolling dolly
with supports can be constructed out of 2x4s to prevent it from bending even
a little bit. I strongly recommend the angle iron between the posts at a
minimum. Worked for me.
Good luck, and be careful.
Mark
Hartford, MI
-----Original Message-----
From: Mquinn698@aol.com [mailto:Mquinn698@aol.com]
Sent: Wednesday, April 12, 2000 9:45 PM
To: triumphs@autox.team.net
Subject: TR4A body removal
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to remove the body from a TR4A. I
have all the fenders, doors trunk, hood, windshield, interior and gas tank
off. The engine and trans are out. I want to work on the IRS and front
suspension and paint the frame. My plan is to roll it off from the side
because I have no good way of lifting it up in the air. I am only afraid
that
I can bend the car because of the doors not there to keep the front and back
stable. The floor is in good condition and the rocker panels have no rust
what so ever. Any Idea on how much it would weigh?
Thanks in advance.
--Mike Quinn
67 TR4A IRS
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